What MSO Design does

MSO Design Ltd is a privately held, multidisciplinary design agency headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, operating since 1977 under current co-owners Kellie Robins (Creative Director) and Jenn Hadley (Studio Director) with a team of approximately eight staff. The studio provides an integrated suite of creative services covering brand strategy and visual identity, corporate and publication design (annual reports, strategic plans, inquiry reports), custom illustration, infographics, animation, website design and development (using platforms such as Drupal, SharePoint, and Microsoft Dynamics), digital marketing campaigns, e-learning tools, and intranet design. Its core differentiator is the in-house combination of strategists, brand thinkers, senior designers, an illustrator, a digital lead, and a cultural consultant, enabling end-to-end delivery without external creative dependencies.

The firm's client base is concentrated in New Zealand and skews toward three verticals: central and local government (NZ Customs Service, Ministry for the Environment, Ministry of Transport, Department of Internal Affairs, Medical Council of New Zealand, Auckland City Council, Upper Hutt City Council, WREMO, Aroturuki Tamariki), Māori and iwi organizations (Te Puni Kōkiri, Te Ohu Kaimoana, Te Kōhanga Reo National Trust, Tupu Tonu, Te Matarau o Māui, Rangitāne Tu Mai Rā Trust, Paiheretia te Muka Tāngata), and a mix of private-sector and non-profit clients (Q Mastercard, Humm, Behemoth Brewing, Heritage Honey, Todd Energy, Kadima Furniture, Save the Children, Cancer Society Wellington). Notable outcomes include the Australasian Reporting Awards Gold for the NZ Customs Service 2023 Annual Report and the production of 500+ assets across 20 campaigns for the Q Mastercard Qhristmas initiative.

MSO Design generates revenue through professional services engagements, with projects scoped and quoted individually on a custom basis, typically delivered under multi-year contractual relationships (e.g., repeat annual-report cycles). Go-to-market is direct: portfolio-driven website, email ([email protected]), phone, and word-of-mouth within the New Zealand design market. There is no disclosed external funding, no M&A activity, and no indication of geographic expansion beyond New Zealand. The firm maintains organic social presence on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram, and is listed on the New Zealand Government procurement register, which supports its public-sector pipeline.

Name

MSO Design

Legal name

MSO Design Ltd

Website

https://msodesign.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

MSO Design is a Wellington, New Zealand–based multidisciplinary design agency of ~8 staff that provides branding, publication, illustration, animation, web, and digital campaign design to government agencies, Māori organizations, and private-sector clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Graphic Design Services

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430), Graphic Design Services (54143)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Visual Identity & Brand Design Systems (BPAFAEAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Digital Creative & Experience Design Agencies (Web/App/UX) (MPAAAAAD)

Keywords

• Graphic design services
• Brand identity design
• Publication design
• Illustration services
• Animation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Wellington

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Design Services: MSO Design generates revenue through providing professional design services including branding, corporate publication design, illustration, infographics, animation, and website development. Projects are typically scoped and quoted for individual engagements, serving government agencies, Māori organisations, and private sector clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MSO Design is a multidisciplinary design studio that delivers branding, corporate and publication design, illustration, infographics, animation, website design and development, and digital marketing campaigns. The studio partners with government agencies, Māori organisations, and private sector clients in New Zealand to produce brand strategies, annual reports, websites, intranet platforms, e-learning tools, and multi-channel campaign assets, supported by in-house illustration and cultural consulting capabilities.

Product overview

MSO Design is a multidisciplinary design studio offering a unified suite of creative services. Their core service lines include Branding Services (strategic brand development and visual identity), Corporate & Publication Design (annual reports, strategic documents, brochures), Illustration Services (in-house custom illustration), Infographics (data visualization), Animation Services (social media and brand animations), Website Design and Development (including CMS implementations), Digital Marketing Campaigns (multi-channel campaign production), E-Learning Tool Development, and Intranet Design using SharePoint. The studio also develops interactive digital tools such as dynamic maps. All services are delivered by an integrated team of strategists, brand thinkers, designers, illustrators, animators, and digital producers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Branding Services Brand strategy and visual identity development for organisations, including creative identities, graphic architecture, and brand storytelling to help businesses build compelling brand stories and communication platforms.
• Corporate and Publication Design Professional document design transforming annual reports, strategic plans, inquiry reports, and corporate collateral into visually appealing and easy-to-understand materials for organisations.
• Illustration Services Custom illustration services delivered by an in-house illustrator (Scott Irvine) to simplify complex ideas and communicate goals and messages creatively, adding artistic flair to client projects without external dependencies.
• Infographics Data visualisation and information graphics that transform complex data into compact, creative, and engaging visual content for reports and communications.
• Animation Services Animation production for social media content, showreels, and brand communications, creating visually striking motion graphics assets for client campaigns.
• Website Design and Development Website design and development services including responsive templates and content management system implementation, demonstrated through Drupal-based projects such as the Kadima Furniture website.
• Digital Marketing Campaigns Comprehensive digital marketing campaign development including social media content, EDM campaigns, animated assets, and multi-channel placements, demonstrated by the Q Mastercard Qhristmas initiative delivering 500+ assets across 20 campaigns and 16 channels.
• E-Learning Tool Development E-learning development and style guide creation for organisational training initiatives, demonstrated through Auckland City Council's te ao Māori education e-learning tool and accompanying style guide.
• Intranet Design and Development Custom intranet design and development using Microsoft SharePoint, creating engaging internal communication platforms such as the Te Pū Matua intranet for Te Puni Kōkiri.
• Interactive Map Development Dynamic interactive map development built within Microsoft Dynamics framework for visualising ecosystems and geographic data, demonstrated through the Te Matarau o Māui Māori Business Ecosystem project.

Quantifiable outcome

• Successful brand positioning for Heritage Honey in competitive Asian export market through strategic packaging design
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers36 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Colenso BBDO: One of New Zealand's largest and most awarded advertising and brand agencies, part of the BBDO network. Comparable to MSO on creative output and client categories but operates at substantially greater scale and with broader media planning/buying capabilities.
• Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand: Global network agency with a strong New Zealand presence offering advertising, branding, and integrated communications. Comparable to MSO on brand and campaign work but as a much larger incumbent with multinational client reach.
• VML New Zealand (formerly Y&R NZ): Global advertising and brand network with a New Zealand presence offering integrated brand, digital, and campaign services. Comparable to MSO on enterprise brand and campaign work but at significantly larger scale as a network incumbent.

Direct peers

• Sugar & Partners: New Zealand creative agency offering brand strategy, design, and campaign work to enterprise and government clients. Comparable to MSO in multidisciplinary creative scope and NZ market focus.
• Shine: Trans-Tasman creative and design agency with offices in Auckland and Australia, offering branding, digital, and campaign design. Comparable to MSO as a similar multidisciplinary creative studio serving enterprise and public-sector clients in the NZ market.
• Alt Group: Award-winning New Zealand design studio known for brand identity, publication, and cultural-sector design work. Comparable to MSO as a similarly-sized, multidisciplinary boutique studio with strong cultural and brand credentials.
• Special Group: New Zealand creative agency with offices in Auckland and Wellington, delivering branding, campaign, and digital creative services. Comparable to MSO in serving enterprise and government clients with integrated creative offerings, though typically at larger scale.
• Designworks: Wellington-based multidisciplinary design agency offering branding, publication, digital, and creative services to government and private sector clients across New Zealand. Closely comparable to MSO in size, scope, public-sector orientation, and Wellington roots.
• Federation: Independent New Zealand creative studio with offices in Auckland and Wellington, focused on brand, design, and digital for enterprise clients. Comparable to MSO as a similarly structured independent agency competing for similar NZ brand and digital mandates.
• Insight Creative: Wellington-based design and brand agency delivering graphic design, digital, and publication services to New Zealand clients. Comparable to MSO as a similarly sized Wellington-rooted boutique design agency with overlapping public-sector exposure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/MSOdesign
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mso-design
• Instagraminstagram.com/mso_design
• Xx.com/msodesign

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MSO Design